Team Building
by MadMadamMim
Summary: A lovely little piece of KatieOliver fluff! Oliver decides to do some team building exercises to help his team improve... involves an orange . . . please RR!


A/N: Yay for fluff! Some would argue that's what's between my ears, but I have a new, more serious fic coming out soon, so maybe that will quell the rumours. Anyway this fic is pretty much pure fluff, so dance and splash and revel in it! A few things may sound similar to other fics. I assure you I mean it only as a compliment to other writers! Oliver's smirk just fits him. I couldn't part it from him. =-( Also, I hope you guys understand the tennis terms "Deuce," "Advantage," and "Game, Set, Match." If you don't, um, ask someone. Or me. In a review. (Haha, anything to get my reviews. lol) See you guys at the other end.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, it's all JKR's, please don't sue me.  
  
Team Building  
  
Obsessed. There is no better word for it. Oliver, that is. That was, of course, the reason that we were all standing out there on the Quidditch pitch when what we really wanted to be doing was lounging over the chesterfields in the common room, chatting and laughing. I know what you're thinking: what else is new? Did I mention something? It's the first day back.  
  
Yes, Oliver Wood has dragged us out here from the Great Hall, where we were slumped against each other, clutching our bulging stomachs and wondering how we were ever going to get ourselves up all those flight of stairs to the tower. I saw him eating - he ate a lot too. You can't tell though - I mean the boy ran all the way out here. And no I most certainly do not always watch Wood eat. Well, sometimes, but is it my fault if he always sits across from me? Where am I supposed to look?  
  
"Katie?" Alicia's face came looming around my shoulder to peer at me.  
  
Oops. I've got to stop daydreaming like this. I think Lish is starting to harbour theories that I like Ol. *ahem* some guy and so I keep spacing out. Better start paying attention.  
  
Oliver cleared his throat with that sexy Scottish brogue. What? How can you clear your throat with an accent? Hang on. sexy??? I did not think that. I did not.  
  
"-so I thought that we should work to become a closer-knit team. Lots of Muggle groups do it -- even the Ministry is considering some activities of this kind."  
  
What the hell is he talking about? Closer-knit? I don't even know how to knit --Gran always said I was hopeless.  
  
"The Muggle Studies teacher has given me some sample team building exercises to try out with you. They are pretty funny, but I still want you to do them seriously." He paused to glare at Fred and George, who immediately looked innocent as only a Weasley can.  
  
"We're always serious, Oliver, don't you know that?"  
  
"Aww.. Our own Captain doesn't trust us. How can we ever hope to become successful business entrepreneurs?" Here Fred sighed gustily, causing Angelina to start shaking with silent laughter.  
  
"Ange!" I whispered. "You're sticking your elbow in my stomach."  
  
Angelina removed the offending part of her anatomy and looked down at her hands, now folded in her lap. Hiding behind the curtain of her hair wasn't doing much good though - her shoulders were still trembling with suppressed mirth. Honestly - was it really that funny?  
  
"Johnson? Is there a problem?" Wood raised an eyebrow, obviously fighting to remain serious himself. He's so . when he is laughing. So what? I don't know. Oliver? So Oliver. Great. That makes so much sense. Leave me alone.  
  
No reply from Angeline. Wood heaved his shoulders dramatically and announced:  
  
"The first exercise is this: arrange yourself in a circle in alphabetical order by last name - first initial too if necessary," he glanced at the twins, "No talking. I'm timing you - let's hope you all know your ABCs." He smirked.  
  
I stumbled forward. Jeez Alicia, no need to push, I was just contemplating. my strategy. ya.  
  
After fifty-four seconds we were arranged in a circle. Clockwise: me, Angelina, Harry, Alicia, Fred, George. Oliver stepped into his place between George and me and stopped the watch.  
  
"Fifty-five seconds precisely. Not bad. Better next time, I hope."  
  
"We might be a bit quicker if we saw the point of it all." Harry sounded sulky. I couldn't really blame him - first day away from insane Muggles and he's stuck with his insane Quidditch captain.  
  
Oliver gave Harry the Look, which said, all too clearly, "If you think idle chit-chat is more important than the glory of Gryffindor, I may have to kill you." Harry noticed the obsessive aura and backed down.  
  
"Of course we want to be out here, Oliver. What else would we be doing?" Oliver didn't seem to notice the faint traces of sarcasm that Harry had not been able to bring himself to entirely expunge.  
  
"Right team. Just one more for tonight I think. After all, some of you may wish to catch up on your friends' summers." He sounded incredulous.  
  
"How kind of you." I heard Harry grumble from the other side of Angelina.  
Our esteemed captain drew out an orange from the pocket of his robes. I wonder what else he keeps in his robes. Wait. I did not mean it like that! I blushed slightly at the thought of ever finding out.  
  
Harry apparently had some inkling of what Oliver was about to make us do, because he flushed and looked nervously at Ange and Lish on either side of him.  
  
"In this exercise, one player holds the orange against the neck, between the head and the shoulder. He or she then passes it to the next player, who must receive it in a similar position without the use of hands or such."  
  
Harry now looked extremely nervous. I don't really blame him. Coming that close to two girls four years older than you can't be easy for a young boy. Especially since we Chasers are so good-looking. Ha ha.  
  
"We'll keep passing it around in a circle until one of us drops it. Whoever that may be gets to help me trim the school brooms, which are in sad need of care." He looked suitably downcast. But I thought I saw *that* smirk hovering around his lips - surely he knows how much we hate trimming those miserable Cleansweeps and Comets.  
  
"Let's go people." He passed me the orange, indicating that I should begin. I shrugged, and placed the orange between my shoulder and my ear. Standing on my tiptoes (Ange is a good four inches taller than my petite five foot two), I came the closest I have ever come (and ever will!) to snogging one of my best friends.  
  
Angelina turned and, bending down to Harry's slight five foot nothing, stuck her tongue out at him.  
  
"Come on, I don't bite you know," she teased.  
  
Harry blushed even darker and tentatively leaned in to take the orange. This maneuver completed successfully (if somewhat shakily) he turned and passed it to Alicia, who thanked him so over-graciously that she started giggling. What is it about my best friends and uncontrollable giggling?  
  
We pretty much got the hang of it as we went on around the circle. The only notable occurrences were that Angelina narrowed her eyes every time Alicia passed the orange to Fred, Oliver seemed to be intent on making me drop the orange through the offices of what I had by this time dubbed That Smirk (capital letters make all the difference), and Harry was gradually getting his overworked blood capillaries under control.  
  
By the time we were on our fifth go-round, we were starting to get a little bored of the whole thing. The Weasleys were the first ones to give in to their impatience - of course. When it was Fred's turn he decided to show off (one of the favorite Weasley occupations, and incidentally one of the few similarities between the twins and Percy) by rolling the orange down his arm and, with a practiced flick, launching it into the air in the direction of George. Beside me I saw Oliver tense - I can understand why - would you look forward to trimming brooms with Fred or George? They'd drive you bonkers before you could even find your twig-cutting shears.  
  
But George caught it expertly, crouching over to cradle it on the back of his neck. Oliver protested.  
  
"How am I supposed to pick that up?" Then with a quick, evil version of That Smirk aimed directly at me, he leant over and sank his teeth into the orange, lifting it up.  
  
Oh. My. God. Does he seriously expect me to take food from his mouth? I put my hands on my hips and looked to Ange and Lish for support. They just raised their eyebrows and looked amused. Great. Thanks guys.  
  
I rolled my eyes. Fine. If that was how he wanted to play, I'd show him that Katie Bell can play too. And win.  
  
I let my acting talents take over. Licking my lips, I looked up to his eyes and then down at the orange and back up again. And smirked, raising my eyebrows. Ha. Take that.  
  
He turned slightly pink, but kept his composure, waiting for me to make the first move. I noticed some of the juice from the orange had dribbled down his chin. I closed the distance between us and lightly licked it off. I noticed two things: one, Oliver had apparently forgotten to shave that morning, and two, that the juice was an incredible tangy sweet. Mmmm.  
  
Oliver was blushing deeply now - I could feel the heat radiating off his face - but still gazing at me intensely. Dude. Stop it Oliver! I'm supposed to be winning, you know.  
  
Hmmm. I flicked my tongue over the exposed bottom edge of his lower lip. He stiffened and swallowed. Advantage: Bell. I bit into the opposite side of the orange, fluttering my eyes shut as I did so.  
  
I could feel juice running over my cheek and down my neck. Damn. Hope he doesn't notice. I started to turn away to pass it to Ange again when Oliver caught my arm and pulled me back.  
  
He smirked. Damn him. Deuce. He leaned forward, whispering in my ear.  
  
"Can't have my Chasers getting sticky now can I?"  
  
I wanted to point out that he made us get sticky, not to mention stinky, every time we practiced, but of course I couldn't what with the orange and all. Advantage: Wood.  
  
He licked slowly up my neck. God that tickles! I tried to keep my muscles taut, but it just wasn't working. I couldn't help myself. I burst into giggles.  
  
He raised one eyebrow (a talent I haven't yet acquired) and dragged his tongue over the place you take a person's pulse. How did he know that my neck is so sensitive? I giggled even harder and, I am sad to admit, dropped the orange as I fell to the ground in my need to get away from his tongue. Game, set, match to Mr. Wood. Damnit.  
  
"Not fair!" I managed to gasp out between side-wrenching giggles.  
  
He just chuckled infuriatingly at me and scooped me up in his arms.  
  
"Come along, Miss Bell. Resistance is useless. We have brooms to trim."  
  
And with that he carried me off towards the broom storeroom.  
  
Behind us, I heard the rest of the team snickering.  
  
"'Bout time." Alicia.  
  
"No kidding." George.  
  
"Think we should follow them?" Fred sounded faintly curious.  
  
"Nah. Give them their privacy Fred. They earned it after that performance." Oooh I'll get Ange back for that one.  
  
"It's obvious they're both goners. I'm off to pull Ron and Hermione away from each other before they damage each others' chances of reproducing." Since when is Harry such an expert on relationships?  
  
Oliver was making faces at me. I have really got to stop spacing out like that.  
  
"What?" I think I sounded sleepy rather than grumpy. After all, I was very full.  
  
"Just this." He leaned in and gave me a sweet, orange-tinged kiss.  
  
.- ~*~ -.  
  
A/N: Awwww! Wasn't that sweet? Please review and tell me what you think! I'm a total sucker for reviews.. What can I do to make you review?  
  
Yes, that's right, click that little button down there. What? You don't have time? Oh come on, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease? Pretty please?  
  
Love you all! 


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